


Sleep In Heavenly Peace

by Sirius4Life



Category: Alex Rider - Anthony Horowitz
Genre: Fluff, Holiday Fic Exchange 2020, Light Angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-10
Updated: 2020-12-10
Packaged: 2021-03-10 16:54:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,093
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28000476
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sirius4Life/pseuds/Sirius4Life
Summary: Alex falls asleep in the arms of the enemy and while they are not known for their kindness perhaps they can find some to spare for poor, exhausted Alex Rider. Written for the Holiday Fic Exchange December 2020.
Comments: 3
Kudos: 41
Collections: Spyfest 2020, Spyfest: Alex Rider Holiday Fic Exchange (December 2020)





	Sleep In Heavenly Peace

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own Alex Rider.

Marcus Cromwell was not a man that liked to be kept waiting, yet that was exactly what he was doing. He had been hired to oversee a hostage exchange between a local crime syndicate and MI6. Marcus knew little of the particulars of the exchange; just that he would be trading a British spy for one of the syndicates mid-level leaders. 

Marcus straightened up as he saw the car finally come into view. He ordered his men to get their own car ready. The car came to a stop a couple feet away and Marcus watched as the leader of the syndicate stepped out of the car. 

“Mr. Cromwell, it’s good doing business with you once again”, the leader started, “you’ll have to forgive our tardiness, our little spy is moving a bit slow today.”

Marcus wasn’t surprised to hear that; the syndicate had a viscous reputation in dealing with their enemies. 

“Where is he?” Marcus asked.

The leader signaled his men to grab the prisoner out of the car. As the prisoner was pulled out of the car, Marcus was surprised at what he saw. The prisoner was a teenage boy, no older than fifteen, at least. The boy looked rough. He had bruises littered across his face and his eyes were red. Marcus could see the telltale signs of sleep deprivation. The boy didn’t put up a fight as he was brought over to Marcus, not like he could’ve anyway with his arms bound behind him. 

“The payment?” Marcus questioned. 

“The remainder of your payment will be sent once we receive confirmation that our member has been safely retrieved.” 

Marcus nodded and signaled his own men to grab the boy. They marched him to the car and forced him into the back seat. The boy was forced into the middle as one guard sat on one side and Marcus sat on the other. Many may have considered it odd for Marcus to sit in the back with the prisoner given that he was in charge, but ever since the close call with the sniper, Marcus sat in the back where there was more protection. 

They hadn’t been driving long when Marcus felt a sudden weight drop on his shoulder. He looked over to see that the boy had fallen asleep and his head had dropped onto his shoulder. The guard moved to wake the boy, but Marcus signaled him to stop, the exchange would go smoother if the boy got at least _some_ rest. 

As they continued towards their destination, Marcus couldn’t help but think about the boy sleeping on his shoulder. The syndicate leader had been very clear that the prisoner was a spy, yet said spy was a child. Marcus had heard rumors of the British Intelligence using a child spy but had dismissed them as just that, rumors. Child soldiers were common in the world of espionage, but child spies were unheard of. It was easier to give a child a gun and teach them to shoot than it was to give a child a cover and train them to steal information. 

Marcus was pulled out of his thoughts as he felt the boy shake. He glanced quickly at the boy in alarm, a seizure or any other medical emergency would complicate things, but the shaking receded just as suddenly as it had come. It was then that Marcus realized that the boy was freezing. He ordered his guards to turn up the heat, it wouldn’t do any good to hand the boy over hypothermic. 

He wondered how the boy had gotten into this situation. The world of espionage was not a world a child just stumbles into. Surely his parents hadn’t put him up to this, but then again, you never know. The world was full of selfish creatures. Marcus didn’t care about the boy, he was simply an assignment, but that didn’t mean he didn’t see the situation for what it truly was. A child cruelly forced into a world he had no hope of surviving. The boy had been lucky this time, but that luck wouldn’t last forever. 

The drive continued to be uneventful. The boy barely stirred as they made their way to the exchange location. As they got closer, Marcus ordered the guard to wake the boy. The guard gave the boy a rough shake and the boy woke up with a start. It took a few seconds of him looking around to remember where he was and what was going on. The boy’s cheeks reddened a little as he realized he had fallen asleep on Marcus’ shoulder. Marcus supposed he would have reacted the same way if he had fallen asleep in the arms of the enemy. 

The car came to a stop at the edge of a bridge. The driver and the guard in the front seat got out first and checked the immediate surrounding area. Once they deemed it secure, they motioned for Marcus and the rest to follow. As the boy was brought out of the car and saw the bridge, an expression Marcus couldn’t quite place flashed across his face before disappearing.

Marcus looked ahead as a series of cars pulled up to the other side. A moment later, a man that Marcus recognized as the syndicate member was pulled out of the car, he too had his hands bound behind him. Marcus turned to the kid and spoke to him for the first time. 

“When I say to, you are going to walk straight across. Try anything and my men will shoot you where you stand. Understand?”

The boy nodded and Marcus turned to face the bridge once again. After taking a moment to identify the locations of all the possible targets, he gave the order for the boy to start walking. The boy immediately began walking at a steady pace, keeping his head trained forward. Marcus tensed as the boy passed the syndicate member, now would be the time MI6 would act if they intended to go back on the deal. He had heard rumors of them doing so in another prisoner exchange years ago. 

The syndicate member continued towards them without incident. Once he got over to Marcus and his men, they quickly bundled him into the car. As a layer of security, the syndicate member would remain bound until he was handed over to the syndicate.

As Marcus got back into the car, he took one last look at the car the boy had disappeared into. He hoped that they would never meet again.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Happy Holidays!


End file.
